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Summary of the impact

The company Ossila Ltd has developed a range of products targeted at
developers of organic electronic devices, with products based on know-how
derived from research within the Soft Matter Physics (SMP) group in the
Department of Physics and Astronomy. The company also supplies
research-based services to technical markets around the world. Since its
establishment in 2010, the company has grown organically, and now has a
growing revenue stream that makes it a sustainable profit-making entity,
with 85% of its products sold to overseas markets. The company enjoys
rapid growth and currently employs 10 people (~7 FTE equivalent). Ossila's
financial turn-over has increased by between 50-100% annually, [text
removed for publication].

Underpinning research

Carbon-based (organic) semiconductors have been the subject of intense
study for around twenty years, as they offer the prospect of enabling the
development of consumer electronics, ranging from colourful, flexible
displays, to printed electronics. The Soft Matter Physics (SMP) group has
a long track record of fundamental studies on organic semiconductors and
has built significant knowledge based on their fabrication, testing and
optimisation.

The research underpinning the establishment of Ossila is based on work by
Professor David Lidzey and colleagues on the development and optimisation
of organic photovoltaic (OPV) and organic light-emitting devices (OLED).
In particular, EPSRC-funded research addressed the optimisation of OLED
devices based on semiconducting polymers. The motivation for this study
was to create a miniature, high-speed OLED device that could be used as
the basis of an organic laser-diode. As part of this work, a structure was
developed based on a glass sheet covered by a series of indium tin oxide
(anode) [ITO] pixels. When coated with a semiconducting polymer film and a
series of metal contacts, the device emitted efficient electroluminescence
at very high brightness [R1]. Using a pulsed drive scheme, it was
shown that such devices could act as communication elements by emitting
high-repetition rate optical pulses [R2, R3]. The work on the
development of an OLED device fabrication system, together with device
encapsulation methods, was an important component of the first series of
products supplied by Ossila.

The development of organic electronic devices based on new combinations
of organic semiconductors has been an area in which Sheffield has a long
track record [R4]. Subsequent work at Sheffield explored the
fabrication and optimisation of OPV devices [R5, R6], based on a
series of polymeric materials. The necessary understanding and
optimisation of the requirements used to process these materials into
efficient OPV and OLED devices that were developed during this research
helped guide the first semiconductor materials set commercialised by
Ossila.

Details of the impact

Summary

The impact of the research is primarily economic, and can be judged in
terms of the income generated and the jobs created. This has been achieved
through the establishment (in 2010) of the company Ossila Ltd [S1].
Ossila provides a catalogue of materials, components and consumable items
to researchers working on the development of organic electronic devices [S4],
and mainly exports its products to foreign markets (40 countries in total,
worldwide). The breakdown of sales per area in 2012 were: UK 15%, EU 36%,
US 8%, rest of world 41% (including India, China, Brazil, Korea, Japan,
Mexico, Canada, Singapore, Malaysia) [S3]. Ossila also undertakes
contract research projects for other companies and has helped such
companies to apply for further funding.

In the three years of trading to 2012-13, Ossila has had a total turnover
of [text removed for publication], with all profits deriving from sales
having been re-invested in the company. [text removed for publication] [S2,
S3]. Ossila currently employs ten part-time and full-time workers
(~7 people at full time equivalent). In total, the company has offered
over 131 man-months of employment at technical, graduate and post-graduate
level.

Development of the company [S4]

Ossila was founded in 2010 by Professor David Lidzey, Dr Alastair
Buckley, and Dr James Kingsley, working at the University of Sheffield.
The initial investment to found Ossila and to purchase stock was made by a
director's loan. The majority of Ossila's sales are through the company
website. The first products developed by Ossila were based on the
technical know-how of its founders. These were based on a patterned ITO
electrode, connector-device and encapsulation system.

Since then, the range of products sold by Ossila has expanded
significantly. The company now sells a range of laboratory consumable
items, electronics and other testing equipment to researchers working in
organic electronics. In 75% of cases, the products supplied by Ossila are
designed in-house, with the company playing a direct role in their
manufacture.

Ossila also sells a range of organic semiconductor materials that each
come with a full-process recipe that allows the user to fabricate
high-efficiency OPV/OLED devices. Ossila commissions the synthesis of many
of the organic semiconductors that it sells. Other materials are produced
by partner companies and are then re-sold by Ossila; however, considerable
value is added through testing material performance, performing quality
control and developing processing protocols that are supplied to
customers.

Joint testing

Ossila undertakes contract device development with other companies
engaged in organic electronics research. This has enabled such companies
to explore the development of new, innovative products that has enabled
them to make investment decisions that are underpinned by experimental
data.

Employment

Ossila is based on the North Campus Nanotechnology site at Sheffield
University. The company has created 7 FTE science-based jobs in a region
of the country that has suffered economic decline due to a historical
dependence on heavy industry.

Wider impact

Ossila has produced further impact by making the research and development
of its customers more effective. It has sold products to over 200 research
groups worldwide, including to many of the world's top Universities, with
this research helping to drive the commercialisation of organic
electronics.